Golf club forced to install CCTV after spate of vandalism on its greens
Ramsey Golf Course has become the target of a vandals in a spate of incidents - Credit: Archant
Ramsey Golf Club has been forced to install CCTV after becoming the target of vandals almost every night.
In one of the latest incidents the club, in Hollow Lane, was hit by a spate of criminal damage after yobs damaged the greens, broke fences, removed flags from the greens, overturned portable toilets and emptied bins.
It was also found that the offenders had left excrement in the holes on the greens, broke bunker rakes and damaged the starters hut.
Club professional, Stuart Scott, said that the club has regularly fallen victim to vandals.
“They damage the greens with the flag sticks and then we have to keep repairing it which takes a long time to repair because obviously it is grass which takes time to grow back to how it should be,” said Mr Scott.
“It keeps happening on a regular basis between Friday evening and Saturday morning.”
Mr Scott said that the starters hut has been repaired to make it safe but they have yet been unable to replace it.
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“The trouble is they are trespassing on private property but we have footpaths running through the golf course so if they decide to do something then they can do what they want to do,” Mr Scott added.
“We are definitely putting CCTV up, it is going to incur a cost but there will be CCTV on the course. I hope that this will either catch them or it will deter them.”
Police believe that the culprits carrying out the damage are teenagers as the spate of incidents peak during the school holidays.
Chris Shaw, police support volunteer, said: “Police know that the offenders are very often teenagers. It is clear that the golf course is a gathering place on long summer evenings for bored young people who may feel that there is nowhere else for them to go or nothing else for them to do.”
Police are asking all parents to make sure that you know where your children, especially teenagers, may be spending their evenings, particularly at this time of year.
“Apart from the risks of them drifting into petty crime, trespassing on the golf course and other private property poses very real hazards - the reservoir near the golf course is a remote and potentially dangerous place,” Mr Shaw added.
In order to prevent further incidents police have stepped up their patrols in the area.
Anyone with information can contact Cambridgeshire police on 101 or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.
